Calvin and Hobbes in Azeroth
by Blu Taiger
Summary: Three children & a tiger stumble into a portal that deposits them in the world of Azeroth. Now, trapped in a world torn by war, they'll have to learn new skills & take up arms if they're to survive. Join Calvin, Hobbes, Susie & Moe as they quest their way through Azeroth in search of a way home.
1. The Adventure of a Lifetime

**Disclaimer:** _Calvin and Hobbes_ is owned by Bill Watterson; _World of Warcraft_ is property of Blizzard Entertainment.

* * *

**The Adventure of a Lifetime**

When the call to adventure is sounded, who will heed it? There are many who willfully seek out adventure, those few, brave souls who risk their all simply for the thrill of the experience. Often times, however, the call of adventure is sent to those who are unprepared for the ordeal; people who are content with their perfectly ordinary lives and never give a second thought to life's wilder sides. Yet those who do not seek adventure are often put through the more memorable experiences.

Such is the case with the group of adventurers in this tale, who were thrust into one of the greatest adventures of a lifetime.

* * *

Susie Derkins was walking home from school one bright afternoon in early October. Though autumn was still in it's early stages, there was a distinct briskness in the air. Susie didn't mind, though. She rather enjoyed this weather, truth be told.

As such, her journey home was taken at a leisurely pace, to better enjoy the scenery, to see the vibrant colors of the leaves, to enjoy the scent of the crisp autumn air.

She was brought out of her revery when a blow from behind sent her tumbling to the ground.

As she picked herself up, she noticed anther figure also pulling itself up. It was a boy about her size with spiky, blond hair.

"_Calvin!_" she shouted at him angrily. "What's the big idea?"

Calvin dusted himself off. He looked at Susie as if he had just noticed her. "Sorry 'bout that." he mumbled. A nervous glance behind him sent him dashing off again.

This was not unusual behavior for Calvin. Still, Susie was curious as to what made him run off like that. Looking behind her, she saw an other figure. It was Moe, one of their classmates; a large boy for his age and a bully in every sense of the word. And he was charging toward her full steam ahead.

With a panicked yelp, Susie turned and ran like a frightened rabbit after the fleeing boy.

She quickly caught sight of Calvin, his backpack bouncing with every step he took; while out of the open zipper of his pack, the head of Hobbes – the stuffed tiger he always dragged around with him – bobbed about as he ran.

When she managed to catch up to him, Susie called out "What happened?"

"Moe and I had a frank exchange of ideas." Calvin tersely replied. He turned an abrupt corner, leading them down a long alleyway that opened into a large field full of tall grasses.

"What did you say that got him worked up into such a frenzy?" Susie pressed.

"_How should I know?_" Calvin shouted. "The guy's like an angry rhino – anything can set him off, and when it does, you best get out of his way!"

"There must be some logical reason why he's so mad." Susie reasoned.

"Maybe." Calvin huffed, nursing a stitch in his side. "But we can save that for later! Right now, the question is how do we get away from him?"

"Of course, the real question is why am _I_ running? He's not chasing _me_!" Susie thought aloud.

Even as this train of thought occurred to her, Susie noticed the surrounding scenery looked a bit more dull than it had earlier – like the color was slowly seeping out of it. Within seconds, all the colors had vanished entirely, leaving the world in shades of gray.

Before Susie could even marvel at this, the scenery darkened, growing ever dim and bleak. It wasn't long before they were plunged into complete and total blackness.

"_HEY! Who turned off the lights?_" Calvin yelled, relieving Susie a little, since she wasn't the only one experiencing this phenomenon. "_WHAA! Who turned off the gravity?_"

Susie was about to ask what he was talking about, when she felt a sudden weightlessness. She gasped as she felt herself lifted up and twirled about – as if she were no more than a leaf in the breeze.

As she turned about, something came into her view. It looked like... clouds. Well, not _clouds_, exactly; more like... _nebulae_.

Somewhere beside her, Calvin whistled. "Get a load of that." he said in awe. Susie could only nod wordlessly.

All around them, bright, shining clouds of various sizes and colors wafted about in an eternal emptiness. The scene was surreal in a way, certainly unearthly by any means. Yet it was also beautiful in its own way; it was tranquil, like nothing could ever be amiss in this unending sea of cosmic wonder.

"Unbelievable." Susie murmured.

"Isn't it, though?" Calvin beamed, a wide smile on his face. Leave it to him to actually _enjoy_ something so weird.

"What do you think those clouds are?" Susie asked.

"No idea... Let's check it out!"

And before Susie could make a word of protest, or restrain him, Calvin kicked off with his feet and surged forward.

Not wanting to lose him, Susie kicked her legs – much like she would do if she were swimming – and followed after him.

When she caught up to him, Calvin had stopped in front of a shimmering bronze nebula and was gazing into it intently. Before Susie could ask what he was doing, the cloud lit up from within with a bright strobe light effect – like a flash of lightning inside a thunderhead. But more astonishing was that there were parts of the cloud which didn't light up, and those parts formed very a distinct image like a black and white photograph. As they looked, the children could make out the shapes of several towers and skyscrapers – a city skyline.

As they looked around at other clouds, they saw very similar effects. Some clouds showed trees and plains, some showed the shapes of animals out in the wilderness, some showed people frolicking around or vehicles or landmarks. Some of these images looked familiar to the children, others not so much.

"Do you realized what this means?" said Calvin as he floated above Susie, upside down.

"No." Susie replied.

"Me neither. But I bet it's important!"

"_HEY!_ What the heck is this place?" shouted a voice from behind them. Calvin and Susie turned to see the figure of Moe floating behind them with a confused look on his face.

"Oh great! You're here, too?" Calvin quipped.

"_Twinkie!_" Moe shouted when he saw Calvin. "What'd you do? _Where are we?_" he demanded.

"What makes you think _I_ had anything to do with this?" Calvin demanded right back.

"You brought us here when you ran into this place! It's your fault we're here!" Moe barked.

"I hasten to point out that I wouldn't have _been_ running if you hadn't been _chasing_ me!" Calvin countered.

Susie looked nervously between the two boys, certain that they would come to blows at any moment.

"Just get us _outta_ here, runt!" Moe bellowed as he propelled himself closer to Calvin. "Or I'll _really_ send ya runnin'!"

"Yeah? Just try it, ya odious neanderthal! I'd love to see you – "

"_Alright!_" Susie swam up, positioning herself between the two boys and stretching her hands out to put distance between them. "Now, you two _idiots_ can play your testosterone induced blame game later. Right now, our efforts would be better spent figuring out how to get back home, _wouldn't you agree?_"

The two boys glared at her, then turned their contempt-filled gazes to each other. After a few tense moments where Susie scarcely dared to breath, they both turned aside, Moe with a grumbling snort and Calvin with a terse "Whatever."

Susie sighed in relief, glad that the issue hadn't escalated. "So then... what do we do now?"

Calvin hummed thoughtfully as he looked around. "You notice how all the clouds show different images when they flash?"

Susie nodded, Moe looked at him slack-jawed.

"Alright, I'm willing to bet that each of these clouds is connected to a different area! So all we have to do is find the one we came out of and go through it again!"

"Are you sure that'll work?" Susie asked.

"You got a better idea?" Calvin countered. She simply shook her head. "Right then. Let's split up, we can cover more ground – er, space... whatever. Just keep your eyes open for a large field full of grass!"

* * *

"Here!" Susie called out to her companions. It had taken several minutes – that is, it might have been minutes, or it might have been longer; it wasn't exactly easy keeping track of time in this place – if time even applied to this place at all. But eventually, Susie had located a nimbus who's images looked similar to where they had departed from.

She waited patiently as Calvin and Moe swam to where she was. When they arrived, they both paused to observe the cloud she had selected. As the cloud flashed, they could make out shapes resembling many growths of tall grass that seemed to go on indefinitely.

"Nice going, Susie." said Calvin, clearly satisfied with the selection.

"So we're goin', right?" Moe asked, impatiently.

"Yes Moe, we're going." Susie confirmed in a soothing voice.

"Right then, on three." Calvin said. "One, two – "

Moe decided not to wait for three – he rushed in once he heard that this was the cloud they were going through. Once he touched the vaporous surface, he was gone.

"Oh, for the love of..." Calvin put his hand to his head. Turning to Susie, he shrugged, saying "Let's go."

The two of them dove into the cloud. Once again, blackness surrounded them. After a moment or two, they felt their feet touch solid ground once again. "Thank heavens." Susie breathed, relief evident in her voice. As she looked around, the darkness started lifting; row after row of tall grass was steadily appearing before their eyes. She breathed a heavy sigh of relief. "It's good to be back home."

"... Ooor the Serengeti." Calvin said, ominously.

Susie was surprised, and a little unnerved, by this statement. Before she could ask what he meant, color seeped back into the world and she saw for herself. The grass, which had been green, was now yellow. And in the distance, there were no buildings. And the trees that populated the area were not the kind one would find in an American suburb, but would be more at home in the savannah.

As she took all this in, Susie's eyes grew wide and her mouth fell agape. "... We're in _AFRICA?_"

"So it would appear."

"_DERKINS!_" the furious voice of Moe roared. Calvin and Susie turned the see his large, brutish form trudging toward them like an angry bear. "This _ain't_ the right place!" he shouted, poking Susie hard in the chest. "You brought us through the wrong cloud!"

"Look I'm sorry, alright? It was a mistake." Susie defended. "Besides, I seem to recall you impulsively diving in without waiting for us!"

"Oh, don't think you can turn this back on me!" Moe's voice level increased. "_You're_ the one who found the cloud!"

"And _you're_ the one who went through it!"

"Why you smarmy _twerp!_" Moe sputtered through his rage. Angrily, he raised his fist, pointing it right in her face.

"I tell ya, if you weren't a _girl_, I'd – "

Before they could find out what he would do, a loud roar sounded close by. Susie and Moe both made startled jumps; Turning to where the sound came from, they saw Calvin, and standing beside him, a tiger with it's mouth open and lips pulled back in a snarl. When it saw that the argument had stopped, it let it's roar die out and glared at them with a look of disapproval.

"_Where did that tiger come from?_" Susie shrieked.

"Huh?" Calvin asked, dully.

"That _tiger!_ Standing right _next_ to you!"

Calvin turned to look at the tiger with an unnatural calmness. The tiger also turned to look at him. "It's only Hobbes." Calvin stated, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"_Hobbes?_" Susie repeated, in astonishment.

"Isn't that that dopey teddy bear you're always draggin' around?" Moe asked, dumbly.

Hobbes turned and snarled at him.

"Yeah, you tell 'im, Hobbes." Calvin smirked.

Susie was still sputtering in bafflement. "_Wha,... bu,... it – you... where did he COME from?_"

"I don't see what the big deal is." Calvin looked at her skeptically. "He's been here the whole time."

"The _whole_ time?"

"That's right."

"But,... but he... wasn't... he was just... and now he's..." Susie could naught but stare at the large cat while she tried to get her mind wrapped around what she was seeing.

"So then." Calvin decided to change topics. "Moe. Uh, why'd you wander all the way over there?"

"I didn't wander anywhere." Moe replied.

"Whadda ya mean? You had to walk back over to us."

"I didn't move from where I came out! 'Til you guys showed up."

Calvin's eyes went wide when he heard this. "Well then, we need to book it! C'mon!" And with that, he turned and ran.

Confused, but not wanting to lose him, Susie, Moe and Hobbes quickly followed after the blond haired boy.

"_Calvin!_" Susie called after they had gone a good distance. "_What are we running for?_"

"_To find the portal!_" was his answer.

"_What are you talking about?_"

"_We went into the cloud_ after _Moe and came out several feet _away_ from him!_" Calvin explained. "_If he really didn't move, like he said, that means – _"

"_The_ portal _moved!_" Susie's own eyes widened at the revelation.

"_Exactly! And if we have any hope of finding it again, we gotta RUN!_"

Moe snorted. "_How're you s'posed to find something you can't see 'til ya walk into it?_"

Though no one would want to admit it, Moe had brought up a valid point. After a while, they were obliged to stop. They were tired, sore, hot, sweaty and breathless.

They had not found the portal.

"So, now what?" Moe sulked, plopping himself on the dusty ground and fanning himself with his hand.

Susie held her sides, breathing hard. "I guess,... guess we'll just have to find help... somewhere."

They decided that before they pressed onward, they would sit themselves down for a much needed rest. The African sun had shone down on them with a sweltering heat, obliging them to remove their backpacks and coats.

"This _stinks!_" Moe griped. "It's so hot an' _buggy_ here!"

"It's right on the equator, what were you expecting?" Calvin retorted.

"Though you have to admit, it does have it's own certain beauty to it." Susie mused as she watched a herd of gazelles prancing off in the distance. "Y'know, I've always wanted to visit Africa... Never imagined it would happen before I even got into high school, though."

"You're off yer rocker, Derkins." Moe huffed. "Who in their right minds'd wanna visit _this_ place?"

Susie narrowed her eyes at him. "People with a taste for adventure, people with an interest in the exotic, who don't want to spend their entire lives in suburbia – people not like you, in other words."

"Ya got _that_ right!" Moe countered. "No real houses, no cars, air conditioning, t.v... People ain't meant to live like this! It's not natural!" he caught a glance at Hobbes, who was lounging on a shaded rock, looking unconcerned with the whole ordeal. "Bet _he_ feels right at home, though." he made a gesture to the tiger. "I mean, this is like, where he's from, innit?"

"There are no tigers in Africa, Moe." Susie corrected him.

Moe turned and laughed at her. "_HAW!_ Shows what you know, with your girly little intellect!"

"No, she's right." Calvin interjected. "Tigers are native to Asia."

Moe looked at at Calvin with a clearly irate expression. He growled in annoyance. "Whatever. This place still stinks and _you're_ still nuts for actually _wanting_ ta be here!"

While Moe and Susie continued arguing, Calvin turned to Hobbes. Unlike the other two children, Calvin could always see Hobbes as a living, breathing being. What's more, to Calvin, Hobbes could walk upright and speak perfect English. "So what do you make of all this?" he asked his lifelong friend.

The tiger hummed, disconcertingly. "Out of all the weirdness we've been through in the past, this _definitely_ takes the cake! Falling into a portal that _literally_ came out of no where, being transported to a different continent..." he looked over at Susie and Moe, who were still in a heated debate. "And why do you suppose they can suddenly see me?"

Calvin shrugged. "Probably a side effect of traveling through that void."

"If that were the case, wouldn't they've mentioned something while we were _in_ the void?" Hobbes countered.

Calvin thought on that a moment. It did seem odd, but with any luck, it would prove to be a minor detail.

"I hope we find help soon." Hobbes stated. I don't think we'll last long in the African wilds."

"If that actually _is_ where we are." Calvin mused.

Hobbes' eyes narrowed at his friend. "And what is _that_ supposed to mean?"

Calvin motioned for him to come closer. He quietly spoke to the tiger. "While we were in the void, I got a good look at this one cloud. In it, I could see a shape that bore a striking resemblance to a parasauralophus."

This news certainly took Hobbes by surprise. "_You're saying we could be in another time period?_"

Calvin shushed at him, worried he might rouse the others' suspicions. Glancing at the other two, it appeared they hadn't noticed. "Hopefully, that isn't the case; but, it _is_ a possibility."

Hobbes' mouth fell open slightly.

"That's why I was so anxious to get beck to the portal." Calvin continued. "I thought we might have a better chance of getting back to – _SWEET GENIUS, LOOK AT THAT!_"

That caught everyone's attention. In one motion, everyone turned to where Calvin was pointing. And there they saw something that defied any explanation.

"That can't be what it looks like... _can it?_" Susie squeaked.

Moe could only watch the strange thing floating through the air, his jaw falling slack.

"Any explanation for this?" Hobbes leaned over to Calvin.

"Just one." the boy answered, following the flying creature with his eyes. "... We _might_ be on a different world entirely."

* * *

The air rang with a great clang as the pickaxe struck the vein again and again. Though it took many blows, and exerted much effort, the vein at length relinquished the precious ores it held.

Aligria wiped her brow with her forearm before claiming her prize. She picked up the pieces of ore she had been hammering away for a good amount of time to obtain. She turned each piece over several times, examining them intently; There were only a few of them, and they were very small. Still, every little bit she could make use of.

"These should do nicely, wouldn't you agree?" she said to her companion.

The little white moth voiced no opinion; it simply fluttered about the ores for a bit before landing itself on it's master's face.

Aligria chuckled softly at the flying insect's antics before gently blowing it off of her face. It then flew onto her shoulder where she stroked it's little head with her finger.

All in all, this had turned out to be a lovely day; she had not run into any hostiles, she had no pressing quests to fulfill and she had made a successful trip gathering ores. Would that she could find a spot to do some fishing, but the Kolkar had made settlements around every spot of water in this land. True, the centaur would be little more than an annoyance, but it was an issue she would rather not have to deal with.

Humming thoughtfully, Aligria placed what she had collected into her pouch. "Well, I suppose we'd best be moving on. Plenty more veins to mine." she shouldered her pick and started moving off when something caught her attention.

There was a noise in the distance, like a scream of abject terror. She turned to the direction the sound had come from, what she saw was most peculiar.

From out of the long grass burst three figures; they looked like... _gnomes?_ NO, _children_! _Human_ children! What were they doing here? And why were they running like the very fires of the Burning Legion were at their heels.

After them, a tiger rushed out of the grass – strange, she didn't think there _were_ tigers in this area. The beast ran after them – no, it was passing them by; then it, too, was running from something. But What?

Then she saw it, out of the vast foliage, an enormous beast stomped out, one of the lands most powerful and dangerous creatures. With a vicious bellow, the monster stomped after the fleeing children with the clear intent to kill.

_So much for that quiet day_. Aligria thought as put put away her pick. Pulling her weapons off her belt, she dashed after the charging beast as fast as her legs could carry her.

* * *

"What is that thing?" Susie whimpered as they watched the unusual creature circling around in the air.

"Off hand, I'd say it's a flying snake." Calvin replied. Indeed, the animal had along, serpentine body with a pair of wings sprouting out either side of it. The snake creature flew through the air – gliding for the most part, but sometimes flapping its wings. It flew around in circles with its head facing toward the ground, much like a raptor circling prey.

"Snakes aren't _supposed_ to fly!" Susie squeaked nervously. "What kind of place _is_ this?"

"I wanna go home." Moe added.

In the background, the snake swooped down, disappearing into the long grass. A moment later, it took to the air again with something – a small animal of some sort dangling from its jaws.

Watching the flying serpent depart, Susie spoke up. "I think we should make tracks."

Calvin nodded. "I agree. Let's move!" And so they all picked up and left.

Calvin didn't know what it was – unease at the knowledge that they were on another world, fear of what other surprises they might run into or something else – but as they made their way through the undergrowth, he felt compelled to pick up the pace. So he moved faster... and faster... and it wasn't long before he was practically dashing through the foliage.

Then he stopped dead in his tracks. On the ground before him lay another of this planet's wildlife.

Calvin's first impression was a stegosaurus. The beast was large and robust with a red, leathery hide; two rows of diamond shaped plates ran along it's spine and four large spikes curved out of the end of it's tail. The head was wrong, though; it was much too large and it's snout was capped with a pair of horns, like a rhinoceros.

A low rumble sounded as the creature exhaled. Calvin breathed a sigh of relief; it was clearly asleep.

Hobbes and Susie suddenly appeared behind him. With sounds of surprise, they both stooped abruptly. Calvin turned his head to see worried expressions on both of their faces. "_More_ monsters?" Susie breathed.

"Don't panic." Calvin advised. "We'll just give this guy a wide berth, and – "

Before he could say another word, Moe rushed into the scene. Calvin shouted "_Moe, stop!_" but it was too late. By the time Moe saw the creature, he was going too fast to stop himself.

Calvin watched the scene unfold as if in slow motion. Moe made a gulp of surprise upon seeing the animal and planted his feet down to stop. But the momentum carried him forward and his foot struck the beast right between the nostrils.

The creature's beady eyes popped open with a startled grunt. When it set it's sights on the boy that had awakened it, it opened it's jaws, letting loose an irritated growl.

Moe got back on his feet made a run for it mere seconds before the animal's teeth snapped down where he had just been. He ran back the way they had come, screaming his head off. The other three looked to the creature to see it pulling itself off the floor and stomping toward them. Naturally, they ran for it.

"Alright," Calvin huffed as he ran. "this might not be a big deal. That thing looks pretty slow – if we keep running, we can probably outrun – " an explosion went off right beside him, sending a rain of dirt and debris into the air.

Shocked, Calvin and Hobbes turned to look back at the monster. It had it's mouth open and a crackling mass of electricity was forming between it's jaws. A second later, it snapped it's mouth closed, sending the charge forward to strike the ground in front of them.

"_IT SPITS LIGHTNING?_" Hobbes shouted, the fur on his tail puffing out.

"_Just RUN!_" Calvin shouted back.

They both bolted as fast as they could, Hobbes running on all fours to get the maximum speed possible. As they came out from under the cover of the trees and into the open savannah, Calvin saw Susie's running figure. And he noticed, with an amount of concern, that with each step her form was getting closer.

When he caught up to her, he immediately grabbed her hand, pulling her along with him. "_Pick up the pace, Susie!_" he yelled.

Susie yelped as she found herself being pulled along. Behind them, there sounded a booming, angry bellow that could have only come from the monster.

"_Why're you dragging me?_" she called.

"_You gotta move faster,_" Calvin answered. "_or you'll be hit by electric lugies!_"

"_Elec – WHAT?_"

Before Calvin could answer, the ground erupted beneath them, tossing them both into the air. When they landed, Calvin hurt all over; he had scrapes all across his face, his side was throbbing, his neck had whiplash, he knew something somewhere was bleeding and he had the suspicion that his arm had been dislocated.

"You alright?" he called to Susie.

"_Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow..._" she softly whimpered. When he looked over to her, he saw her clutching her leg to her chest; her arms were covered in scratches and blood was dripping from the side of her face.

There was a soft padding sound as Hobbes rushed back to them. "What happened?" he asked with a look of concern. "You guys alright?"

A rumbling growl brought their attention back to hulking monstrosity as it trudged ever closer to the downed children. Without a single hesitation, Hobbes brought himself to stand in front of Calvin and Susie, a bold, yet feeble barrier from harm. He pinned his ears back, bared his teeth and growled with all the menace he could muster, doing his very best to look intimidating.

It didn't work.

The monster snorted dismissively at the tiger and continued coming closer.

Hobbes' resolve was galvanized. He knew quite well that this behemoth could probably kill him with little effort, but his friends lives were at stake; and if he was to die, he could at least die knowing he did what he could to protect them. With a mighty roar, he charged at the creature, making a beeline for it's neck.

One swing from the beast's massive head ended the fight before it began.

Calvin and Susie watched in horror as Hobbes' limp body was sent rolling across the savannah floor. When he finally stopped, Hobbes tried valiantly to raise himself up, but quickly collapsed.

Seeing the tiger was down, the beast turned it's attention back to the injured children. It opened it's maw to show a vibrant display of energy building up for a devastating blow. The children's eyes widened; they knew for sure, there was no possible way they were going to survive this.

A loud, sizzling _CRACK_ sounded as the electricity discharged. But to the children's astonishment, it wasn't the monster – the lightning had come from behind, _striking_ the beast.

The creature stumbled a bit, trying to recover and get it's bearings back.

From behind, Calvin and Susie heard what sounded like a woman's scream; actually, not really a scream, more like a roar – a battle cry.

A blur streaked in front of them. The animal grunted in pain, raising it's head to reveal two long, red streaks that hadn't been there before.

A lone figure now stood between the creature and the children. It was a woman – at least, Calvin assumed it was a woman; it had a feminine form to it, at any rate. But whatever it, or _she_ was, she definitely _wasn't_ human. She was very tall, taller than anyone Calvin had ever seen – including both his parents. A mass of wavy blue hair cascaded down her back, she had long, bent legs that ended in a set of cloven hooves and out of the base of her spine sprouted a short, blue tail that twitched in a similar way to an angry cat. She held a long dagger in each hand.

The monster glared at the newcomer, furiously. It bellowed at her in rage. She flipped her knives in her hands and snarled back at the beast.

The animal charged toward her, pounding the ground with each step. In response, she raised her foot in the air, and when she brought it down, the ground shook, throwing the beast off balance. Grunting, the beast turned to it's side and swung it's spiked tail at her. She dodged the initial swing, but was nicked across the shoulder when it swung back. It swung at her again, causing her to roll to dodge it. And when she came up, she held some kind of stone statue in her hand – where had _that_ come from?

She planted the stone object on the ground and it came alive with a blazing red light. The object then began spewing balls of fire the the creature.

The woman landed a few more successful blows on the creature's flank while it was distracted before placing another stone figure on the ground. This one gave off a soft blue light and let off pulses of energy every few seconds.

Calvin and Susie continued to watch as the strange woman battled the brutish monster. Though she landed blow after blow, the beast's hide was thick and it was nothing, if not tenacious; it too would land a strike now and then, whether by it's electric surges, it's sharp horn and spikes or simply from it's massive girth.

As they watched in captivated awe, Calvin noticed that he hurt a little less whenever the blue statue set off a pulse. So it was with little difficulty that he could turn to look when he heard heavy footsteps behind him.

"Where'd _she_ come from?" asked Moe, looking at the unusual fight with a slack jaw.

"Who knows?" Calvin replied. "We're just lucky she showed up!"

They turned back to the fight to see the woman shooting what appeared to be a blast of frost out of her hands. It hit the animal square in the head, coating in in a shallow layer of ice. This only offered a moments respite as the creature twisted it's head, thereby shattering the ice. It then shoved it's horn at the woman; she caught it in her hands, but the beast pushed her back through brute force. It then swung it's head, whipping the woman around a few times before tossing her to the side. The beast looked ready to end fight, but then it unexpectedly bellowed painfully.

Everyone looked up and was astounded to see Hobbes was on the creature's back and had his claws dug into the sides of it's neck. The creature grumbled irritably, pushing it's front legs off the ground in an attempt to buck the tiger off – but Hobbes wasn't having any of it, not this time.

As the woman picked herself off the ground, see saw the beast pitching and bucking. She realized this was an opportunity, and she took it. She picked up her daggers and plunged them into the creature's exposed throat.

For a brief moment, all was silent.

A low, pitiful moan sounded as the monster slowly toppled over. It fell to the ground with a heavy thud. It's tiny eye, now looking more sad than angry, rolled back into it head before closing for the last time. The creature let out a shuddering breath and moved no more.

The children looked in wonder as the mysterious woman stood over the beast's corpse. Though she had won, her posture didn't look like one of victory – rather, she looked weary, as if she felt sorry for having to kill the creature.

Hobbes, who was clearly still weak from the ordeal, limped closer to the woman on shaky legs. When she noticed him, she reached out her hand and scratched his head in an affectionate manner. Even from a distance, Calvin could tell he enjoyed it.

Then the woman turned and came toward them. She looked just as strange from the front as she did from behind; her skin was indeed blue all over, she had a heart shaped face with a pair of short horns curving back from her forehead, and just below her pointed ears, they could make out what looked like long, fleshy tendrils, and her eyes – her eyes seemed to glow with a bright blue light, making it difficult to distinguish iris or pupil.

The children were so surprised that they tried to back up as much as their injuries would allow.

The woman put up her hands in a placating gesture. "Do not fear. I will not harm you." she said in a soft voice. Once again, the children were surprised, surprised that this alien woman spoke in a language they could understand.

When she approached them, the woman knelt down and looked them over with a critical expression. "You are injured?" she inquired. With their silent nods, she placed a hand over Calvin and Susie.

Gradually, they felt much better. The pain ebbed away, cuts and scrapes closed and wounds healed.

When the woman took her hands away, the children felt just about normal again. They looked up at their unexpected savior in awe. "... Thank you." Susie said, at length.

"You are welcome." the woman responded, smiling warmly.

"But w,... who are you?" Susie asked.

"_What_ are you?" Calvin added.

"And what's yer phone number?" Moe added, grinning stupidly.

The woman chuckled before turning to each of them. "My name is Aligria. I am a shaman... and I am not certain as to what you are referring."

"Alright." Calvin said, nervously. "So uh,... thanks for saving us, y'know, from that monster."

"Thunder lizard." she corrected him. She reached out and pulled them both to their feet. "Now then, might I inquire as to your names?"

"Oh sure! I'm Calvin... Calvin Mitchell... and this is Hobbes." Calvin put his arm around the tiger's shoulder as he introduced him.

"I'm Susie Derkins."

"Moe Stern."

"I see." Aligria nodded. "It is nice to meet you all." she looked around for a bit. "Forgive me, but you all seem a little young to be traveling on your own... Where are your parents?"

"Oh, um... our parents aren't... they're not... _around_." Susie explained.

"Oh." Aligria exclaimed, her expression falling. "My condolences."

"What? Oh no, no, no they're not _dead!_" explained Susie. "They're just... _not_ here!"

"... Indeed?" Aligria raised an eyebrow.

"It's a long story." Calvin added. "And kind of incredible."

"In_deed?_" she repeated, obviously interested in where this was going to lead. "Well,... you shall have to tell me all about it, then." she sat herself down in the grass, laying her long, ungulatine legs to the side and prompted them to proceed. Following her lead, the children all sat themselves down and began relating their tale.

* * *

They spent the next few minutes telling Aligria everything that had happened to them on this very unusual day. Aligria sat patiently as the children spun their tale. When they had finished, she sat quietly for a moment, contemplating what they had told her. Finally, she said. "That is not so unbelievable."

"... Really?" Calvin was clearly taken aback by her response.

"Of course. After all, we draenei came to this planet from another world, ourselves."

The four inter-dimensional travelers took a moment to digest what she had said.

"You're... not from this world?" Susie asked.

"No." Aligria stated, climbing to her feet. "Our vessel crashed onto this world after our refuge, Draenor, was destroyed."

"Then... you could get us home?" Susie asked, pleadingly.

The draenei looked at her sadly. "Myself, personally,... no. I'm afraid my knowledge of how traveling between dimensions works is all but non-existent." The faces of the children and tiger fell. "... Of course, there might be others among my people who could help you." she added.

"Really?" Susie asked, her countenance brightening.

"Yes. But for now, we've more pressing issues." she looked at the position of the sun. "The day is fading quickly – come." she turned sharply and started walking. "With a steady pace, we should be able to reach Ratchet by evening."

Calvin, Hobbes, Susie and Moe all looked at each other – having no better ideas or alternatives, they wordlessly got up and followed after the shaman.

They had been walking for several minutes. No one really said anything – too overwhelmed by the events of the day. Eventually, though, the quiet started getting to Calvin. And he being as curious as ever, decided to strike up a conversation with Aligria.

"So,... um, what can you tell us about this world we're on?" he asked.

Aligria looked down at him. "The residents of this planet call it Azeroth." she answered. "Presently, we are on the continent, Kalimdore, in a land known as the Barrens."

"And... what about this place you're taking us to – Sprocket?"

"Ratchet." she corrected him. "'Tis a port town. Ships sail regularly to and from Stranglethorn."

"Is that where you're taking us?"

"To Stranglethorn? _Heavens, no!_ If anything, that jungle would be even more dangerous! No, in the morning we shall fly to Teldrassil. From there, we'll make our way to the Exodar."

"Right." Calvin continued in silence for a while. As the shadows grew long across the landscape, he found himself growing tired and sore. "How much longer 'til we get to Ratchet, anyway?" he wailed.

"See for yourself." Aligria gestured forward with her hand. The children stopped and looked ahead. They saw many buildings clustered about in a hodge-podge array. Buildings that looked old and weathered; many looked to have been partially demolished and hastily patched up.

"_That's_ Ratchet?" Moe asked, dubiously.

"Perhaps not the most posh of lodgings." Aligria sighed. "But it will have to do." And with that, the group descended into the town.

When they entered Ratchet, the children saw many creatures bustling about the streets. These creatures were short – no taller than they were, with green skin and large, bat-like ears. Many of them had very shrewd, calculating expressions on their faces, some looked positively sinister. Thankfully, none of the green midgets molested them in any way; a few cast curious glances their way as they passed, but then turned back to their own affairs.

"Aligria,..." Susie's voice became very high pitched. "What are these things?"

"Goblins." the shaman answered. She turned to look at her charges to see they all wore looks of shock on their faces. "Do not fret," she said, reassuringly. "just be sure to mind your own business and show respect and they will not bother you."

Though her words were reassuring, that wasn't the cause for their startled looks. It wasn't the fact that they were goblins, so much as the fact that they were _goblins!_ Beings that on earth had been relegated to the realms of myth and fantasy – stories parents told their children to frighten them into behaving – were, on this world, actual _living_ creatures.

Before any of them could voice their thoughts on the matter, though, Aligria was strolling over to one the goblins who held a long blade and a shield shaped like a gear. "Pardon me," she said. "but could you direct us to the inn, please."

The goblin looked up his rat-like nose at her, his face formed into an uncaring expression. "Sure." he said, gesturing with his thumb over his shoulder. "It's right up that hill, there. Look for the building with the mailbox out front, ya can't miss it!"

Aligria thanked the goblin and led the group up the hill. Before them stood a large structure that looked big enough to be an inn. And on the ground in front of the building was a little wooden box with several slots in it; the box was bedecked with a piece of wood shaped to look like a sealed envelope. It was attached to the box by a spring that swayed back and forth as the wind blew.

"... I guess that's the mailbox." Calvin stated, looking at the odd structure.

"No kidding." Susie said, dryly.

"Well, no sense staying out here all night." Aligria said, she turned and strode toward the door of the inn. "Come."

They quickly followed her, but as the were entering, Aligria stopped them. "Wait." she did a quick head count. "Where is the big boy,... Moe, was it?"

Calvin and Susie blinked in surprise, then turned to see Moe wasn't with them. Calvin quickly spotted him, still standing where they had been, staring at the mailbox.

Sighing in exasperation, Calvin bounded over to him. "Moe, c'mon! You're keeping us waiting!"

Moe made no response, only staring ahead, blankly. Calvin looked to see that his gaze was fixed on the bobbing envelope as it swung back and forth and back and forth. When he looked back at Moe, Calvin saw his face was lax and his mouth was cracked open; he also swayed ever so slightly in tandem with the letter.

Calvin groaned when he connected what had happened. "_Moe, snap out of it!_" he barked. He snapped his finger right next to the larger boy's ear.

Moe stuttered a bit, looking around dumbly. "_huh, wha – _"

"C'mon," Calvin repeated. "we're headed for the inn!"

Moe blinked, then shrugged his shoulders, tromping off to rejoin the group as if nothing had happened.

* * *

Inside the inn, the group walked up to a bar behind which a goblin was seated, leaning back in his chair with his feet resting on the bar and his hands folded behind his head. He made no motion as they approached, only continuing to snore quietly. They waited a couple moments longer; when he still made no motion, Aligria cleared her throat pointedly.

Immediately, the goblin leaned forward, pulling his feet off the bar and resting his hands before him in a business-like manner. "Ah, potential customer!" he said with a wide smile when he saw them. "What can I get for ya this fine evening?"

"We require two rooms with two beds each for the night." Aligria answered.

"Right then, lemme see what I got." the innkeeper turned and began looking through various cards and papers scattered across his workspace. Eventually, he turned back to them, saying "I can getcha two rooms, but only one has two beds."

"That's fine." Aligria replied. "We can sort it out ourselves, later."

The innkeeper turned to the wall behind him. One the wall was a plaque with several nails protruding out of it. A few of the nails had keys hanging on them. He pulled two keys off the plaque and turned back to the group.

Before handing over the keys, Aligria pulled a small pouch out of her pocket. She reached into the pouch and pulled out a number of silver coins. She placed them on the counter as well as a few more, saying "Could we also get something to eat, while we're here?"

The innkeeper grinned. "Sure thing. What'll ya have?"

"Whatever you've got." Aligria said as she pushed the money toward him.

The innkeeper chuckled as he accepted her coins. "Ya got some gumption toots, I'll give ya that."he handed her the keys and said "Take a seat, I'll have yer food out in a jiffy."

Everyone followed the draenei to a table in the corner where they all seated themselves. No one had mentioned it, but they were all quite hungry (it's amazing how being transported to a new world, wandering around in the hot sun and being chased by monsters can work up an appetite.)

After a few minutes, the innkeeper returned and set four cups and a platter on the table. The platter had a loaf of bread, a large cut of some kind of meat, a wedge of cheese and a bottle containing some kind of beverage.

They thanked their host who gave a frank nod and returned to his post.

Aligria ate her food slowly and calmly while the inter-dimensional travelers devoured theirs with gusto. It felt so good to have food in them again and they took each bite as if it would suddenly vanish again. The food itself was probably delicious, but they were all too hungry to really care what it tasted like.

Once the food was taken care of, they all laid back with content sighs and satisfied stomachs.

* * *

As the sky outside turned dark, Aligria led them to where their rooms were. She unlocked the first room and peered inside. "Ah, this would be the two bed room." she said as she fully opened the door. "I believe it would be best if you boys would sleep in here."

Calvin, Hobbes and Moe quietly went into the room, Calvin looking at Moe a bit dubiously – he was _not_ thrilled with the prospect of sharing a room with the oaf. They all said their goodnights and Aligria and Susie left them.

Moe shuffled toward the first bed and fell into it with a grunt. In a second, he was breathing heavily.

Calvin removed his shoes and socks and pulled back the covers on the second bed. He and Hobbes climbed in and made themselves comfortable.

Calvin looked out of the room's only window at the stars twinkling in the night. He had been worried at first, but now that they had found civilization – of sorts – and weren't in any imminent peril, he found himself growing excited about the situation they were in. "Isn't this awesome, Hobbes?" he whisper-shouted. "A whole new world with magic and monsters! And we're the first to see it! Just imagine all the things we'll be able to tell people when we get home!"

"_If_ we get home." Hobbes grumbled.

"Aw, c'mon. There's sure to be a way back to Earth – we just have to find it."

"How? We stumbled into that void by accident! And the portals that lead into it can't be seen – how're we supposed to find one? And if we do, by some miracle, happen to find one, how'll we find the right portal to get us home?"

"Calm down, the draenei are from another planet, too; remember? I'm sure they know all about navigating through dimensions!"

From the other side of the room, Moe's voice growled "Hey _shut up!_ I'm tryin' ta _sleep!_"

Calvin and Hobbes glared in the direction of Moe's bed, then looked at each other before nestling down.

Calvin gazed out the window once more, looking at the stars keeping their diligent vigil. Somewhere out among the vast expanse of the universe was home. Somehow, he knew they would find their way back their again, no matter what. But for now, there was an exciting world outside full of mysteries and adventures just waiting to be explored. They had been thrown into the adventure of a lifetime, and he indented to savor every moment of it.

Slowly, he drifted off to sleep, eagerly awaiting what excitement the morning would bring.


	2. The Way of the World

**The Way of the World**

Susie yawned deeply as she stretched in the bed. She blearily rubbed her eyes as she looked out the window to see the bleak, gray light of early morning. She let herself fall back onto the pillow with a tired sigh and stared at the ceiling for a spell. When she determined that she wouldn't be getting back to sleep, she crept to the side of the bed and peered over to the floor where Aligria lay. She found the woman laying sound asleep beside the bed.

_I guess she wasn't kidding_. Susie thought to herself. The previous night, Aligria had decided to sleep on the floor, leaving the bed for Susie. Naturally, Susie had protested; but the draenei had insisted, stating that she had slept on harder surfaces than this.

Susie fell back into the bed; from the looks of things, it would be a while before the shaman awoke. She was reminded of the family vacations her parents used to take her on. Susie had always been an early riser while her parents, well, weren't. So often times she would end up stuck in a hotel room with no means of entertaining herself while she waited for her parents to wake up. There was no telling how much longer the shaman would sleep, but from the looks of things, it could be quite a while – and odds were the boys would sleep in even longer.

So that left her in a conundrum; should she wait for an undisclosed period of time with nothing to do until everyone awoke, or go out and do something while everyone slept.

Granted, going out could be dangerous, but she was already growing antsy – she needed to _do_ something! Maybe an early morning walk, that would surely pose little danger – on the other hand, danger could lurk just about anywhere. Still, she wouldn't have to stray far from the inn – but then, who knew what kind of ruffians were around. Oh, if only everyone would just wake up already!

After a few more minutes of internal struggle, Susie finally decided that she would go nuts if she stayed in this room any longer.

Quietly, she tip-toed out of the room and down the stairs. True, this was probably a bit reckless, but she could play it safe – she would just go out and enjoy the fresh air a bit, she wouldn't stray from the inn and she'd just keep to herself. Nothing could go wrong with that, right?

She stepped out into the sunlight, breathing deeply; inhaling the scent of the morning. For the next few minutes, she merely paced back and forth across the front of the inn. Her mind wasn't really focused on anything; occasionally, she would pause to look at the town below – wondering when it's inhabitants would emerge for their daily grind, other times she would look to the sky – sparing a thought or two for what was happening back on Earth; her parents must be frantic with worry at this point. She sighed, sadly. How were they ever going to get home?

As she was pressed down with grief, her eyes happened to travel eastward – to the sea. The sun was shining brightly on the waves, creating ripples of brilliant gold. Despite her worry, Susie smiled; there was just something about seeing the sea in the morning that had such a calming effect.

She had promised herself that she would stay close to the inn, but seeing such a breathtaking sight, really made her want to get a closer look.

Rationalizing that she would be quick, she carefully made her way down the hill and followed the path that pointed toward the shore.

As she started strolling across the wharf, something caught her attention. Down at the end of the pier, a figure was seated. So, it appeared she wasn't the only early riser here, after all. Quelling her reservations, she slowly made her way closer to the unknown person.

The figure sat on the edge of the pier, feet dangling off the end with a fishing pole held in it's hand. Beside the figure, something large and white lay on the pier – an animal of some kind. Susie took a good look at the fisherman; like Aligria, this woman had blue skin and was impressively tall – that's where the similarities ended, however. This woman had neither tail nor horns, her digits consisted of two thick fingers and a thumb and her hair was a wild, teal mass arrayed in a sort of mohawk trailing down her back.

As Susie watched, the bizarre looking figure tugged on her line. She pulled the rod up with a great heave and brought a rather large fish flying through the air. As gravity began to pull the fish back down, the woman deftly caught it with her other hand.

"Wow! That was impressive!" Susie cheered, only realizing the blunder she made after the fact.

The woman stopped upon hearing Susie's call. She and her lion – Susie could see it clearly, now – turned to look at her. The woman looked at the strange girl that had suddenly appeared. Her shrewd, yellow eyes narrowed upon seeing the girl; her mouth, which had short pointed tusks sticking up out of it, bent into a suspicious frown. She turned back around without making a single comment.

Looking back, Susie probably should have left then and there. However, she was still intrigued by this wild woman. And since she had already broken the ice, so to speak, she might as well try to be friendly.

"So,... how're they biting?" she asked. There was no response. "Have... you been fishing long?" she cast her gaze toward the horizon. "looks like it's going to be a bright, sunny day. I just love this sort of weather, don't you?... It's so nice out, isn't it?... How many fish have you caught?"

"Go away." the woman finally replied with a curt, husky voice, not bothering to turn around.

Susie was taken aback. "There's no need to be rude!" she said, making a little indignant huff. "I was only trying to make polite conversation – it's not like I was verbally attacking you or anything. I was just saying that – _oh_. Nice kitty... nice, _big_ kitty..." Susie stopped short as the lion stalked up to her. He opened his jaws, letting a low growl rumble through and giving Susie an unobstructed view of his very large, very _sharp_ teeth. Susie wondered if cats were capable of giving the evil eye – 'cause this one sure looked like it was.

The woman turned to look at this spectacle, her mouth upturned in a bemused smirk. She gave a short, sharp whistle and the lion backed down, laying back down on the pier, but still keeping his eyes on Susie.

"Look, little girl." the Woman glared at Susie. "Just because Ratchet be neutral territory does _not_ mean I has to be all friendly-like about it!" she cast her line back into the ocean. "It be best if ya be movin' on, now."

Susie gawked at the wild woman incredulously. "Well, fine then." she grumbled, making an about-face. She walked away at a steady pace, muttering under her breath as she did. "It'd just be a waste of time talking to her. Probably for the best, anyway; who knows what kind of person she is. What with that hair, she looks like some kind of troll! And those clothes – did she fish them out of a dumpster, or something? Sheesh, I bet _Calvin_ has more manners than she do-_aaAH!_" she suddenly felt a hard pressure on the back of her neck which pulled her off of her feet.

She found herself looking into the furious face of the strange woman. "_WHAT-DID-JOO-SAY?!_" the woman's voice slithered out from between her clenched teeth.

Susie looked into the woman's angry eyes, struck with panic. "What? That crack about your clothes? I didn't mean it it, I just – "

"_BeFORE that!_"

"... How did you even hear all that?!"

"_Nevah you mind! Answer me!_"

"I just – just said your hair looked like a troll! They're, uh, these little toys we have back where I'm from. – Oh, but your hair is actually very lovely! It's _daring_; devil may care! Really, not like a troll at all!"

The woman pulled Susie closer as her grimace melted into a scowl. "Now, you listen good, mon. _I AM a TROLL!_"

Susie's face paled as the full impact of the situation settled on her. "I, I'm sorry!" she pleaded. "I didn't know!"

"Dat be no excuse!" the troll snarled, clutching her tighter. "Ya make de wrong comments to de wrong people, it gonna land'ja in _hot watah!_"

"You're right, you're absolutely right!" Susie nodded fervently. "So... why don't you just put me down, and we can get out of each other's hair before something happens that we both regret."

The troll leered at her. "Maybe I teach you a little lesson, first, yah?" she said, bringing her other hand up to the frightened girl's face and sticking her finger under her chin. "A little someting to remind ya what happens when ya cross de wrong people."

Tears started spilling out of Susie's eyes. She knew this crazy woman would probably beat her to a pulp, or worse, and likely take great enjoyment out of it. "_Please don't!_" she wailed. "_I'm sorry! I won't do it again! Please... please!_"

"Is there a problem?"

Susie and the troll both turned as a voice sounded behind them. Susie gasped in relief; Aligria stood a few paces behind them, her arms crossed and her eyes narrowed. Behind the draenei were Calvin, Hobbes and Moe, all of whom were breathing heavily – they must have run there.

The troll glared at Aligria. Her eyes shifted over to Susie, then back to the draenei. "Dis yours?" she asked, tilting her head toward Susie.

"In a manner of speaking, yes." Aligria replied, tersely.

The troll strode over to Aligria and roughly shoved Susie into the shaman's arms. "Girl gots a _beeg_ mouth." she seethed pointedly to the draenei. She cast one last glare at Susie. "likely to get her in trouble, one day." and with that, she strode past the small group and stalked off, without so much as a backward glance.

The boys stared after the troll as she stalked away, they had never seen anything like her before and were strangely mesmerized by her wild appearance. "Get a load o' that." Moe whispered in a tone of awe.

"And get a load of that!" Calvin added as a huge, white lion prowled past. When it saw them, the lion turned and opened his mouth with a low, seething growl. He then shook his steely mane discontentedly and followed after his master.

"_Yeah?!_ Well, _same to you!_" Hobbes shook his fist at the larger feline's retreating form.

Calvin looked at his friend curiously; he was glaring after the lion with a very irate expression. "Uh... what, er,... did he say?" Calvin asked, tentatively.

"Nothing I care to repeat." Hobbes hissed, crossing his arms.

Aligria walked up behind them just then with Susie following close at her heels. "Thank you!" Susie said to her, her eyes still a little watery. "If you hadn't shown up when you did – "

"It's alright, child." the shaman placed a comforting hand on her head. She then looked at her with a more stern expression. "Now, I trust you've learned something from this."

She nodded, solemnly. "I won't go out alone again. I promise."

Aligria smiled. "Very good, then." Turning to the whole group, she added "Now then, I believe it's time we had some breakfast. I have a few rations in my bag, or if you would like, we can return to the inn. Mind you, we will have to come back this way when we press on."

After a bit of thought on the matter, they decided they might as well stay where they were, rather than have to walk all the way to the inn and back again. So Aligria passed out small loaves of bread and pieces of jerky to each of them and they all sat down to eat. The food was dry and chewy, but at least they were satiated.

As they ate, Calvin turned to look at Susie; she didn't say anything, but he could tell that she was still shaken from the ordeal she had just gone through. Despite his curiosity, he decided now might not be the time to talk about it.

Unfortunately, Moe wasn't quite as tactful. "So who was that crazy lady who just stormed off?" he blatantly asked, not even noticing Susie's face paling.

"A troll;" Aligria stated simply. "Clearly a hunter."

"Wait, how can you tell?" Calvin asked before he could stop himself.

Aligria finished off her bread, then replied. "The lion; it is obviously her pet." She looked at the children to see four faces staring back at her in bewilderment. She sighed inwardly, remembering that these children were unfamiliar with the way of this world. Clearing her throat, she reiterated. "You see, in this world, hunters develop a... unique relationship with the wilderness. In time, the learn to tame wild beasts. These pets then accompany them through the world, acting as aids and help meets to their masters."

"Wow." Calvin sighed, appreciatively. He cast a wary glance back to where the troll and her pet had disappeared. "'Kay then. So, what about his teeth?"

"Pardon?" Aligria looked at him, confused.

"That lion! Why did he have saber-teeth?"

The draenei only looked at him, clearly not getting his meaning.

"His canines were sticking out past his chin!" Calvin pointed his index fingers down beside the sides of his mouth to illustrate his point. "What's up with that?"

Aligria shrugged. "That is not unusual. All the big cats have those... saber-teeth, as you call them."

When they had all finished their meager breakfast, Aligria led them down along the coastline to where several wooden box-like structures were set up. The children were startled by what they saw resting in those boxes. There were large, leonine creatures roosting in each nest; their forepaws were bat-like wings and their tails were similar to a scorpion.

"_What are those tings?!_" Moe asked, pointing at the strange monsters, with no small amount of panic in his voice.

Aligria looked where he was pointing. "Those are wyverns." she answered.

"We're,... we're not gonna _ride_ on those things!... Are we?" Moe asked, his voice quaking.

"Of course not. Don't be absurd!"

Moe heaved a sigh of relief.

"Wyverns are horde transport. We shall be riding gryphons." the shaman swept her hand before her. The children looked and saw more boxes sitting across from the wyvern roosts where creatures that resembled enormous eagles were seated.

"Oh. Well that's loads better, then." Moe groaned.

Aligria strolled over to the goblin in charge – the Flight Master, she had called him – and began conversing with him. After a few moments, she motioned for them to come over while the Flight Master coaxed one of the gryphons off it's roost.

"Right then," Aligria started when they had all arrived. "I've chartered some birds to take us to Teldrassil. By the looks of things, we should have a smooth trip. Now, there are a few things to remember when riding on gryphon back."

As Aligria explained safety measures to the children, the Flight Master led the gryphon – which now had a sort of saddle strapped across it's back – over to the group.

"Alright, who shall go first?" Aligria asked when she saw the gryphon standing ready. "Moe, how about you?"

Everyone turned to look at the large boy, who in turn, was looking at the eagle-lion hybrid rather dubiously.

"Moe? Something wrong?" Susie asked, noticing his hesitation.

"... Look, I'm not too crazy 'bout flyin', alright?!" he said, waving his hands in front of him.

"What's the matter? You've been on an airplane before, haven't you?"

"Yeah well planes are one thing! You got an inclosed space with actual seats and seat belts – and they serve peanuts! With this, you got nothin' to protect ya from the elements! Ya might get blown off, or attacked by flyin' predators, or, or – "

"Oh, _do_ calm down." said Aligria, suddenly appearing behind Moe and lifting him up by the armpits.

Calvin and Susie were both impressed. Moe must have weighed quite a bit, and Aligria hoisted him up without even a grunt of effort.

"Flying is perfectly safe." the shaman continued as she walked over to the waiting gryphon. "The gryphons are well trained to fly along the safest routs, they don't have any natural predators and we will be behind you the whole time! You have nothing to worry about!" she quickly placed the still squirming and simpering Moe onto the gryphon's back. When she was certain he was firmly situated, she turned to the Flight Master, apologetically. "Terribly sorry about all that." she said.

"Whatever. So long as I get paid." the Flight Master replied in a bored tone. He pulled out a small whistle from somewhere and piped a few notes.

When the gryphon heard the tune, it spread it's wings out and turned toward a long dirt path – a runway of sorts. The gryphon dashed down the path, flapping it's wings as it ran. When it reached the end of the runway, it made a leap and took off into the air.

Everyone watched the gryphon fly off into the distance – with a scream from Moe growing ever fainter.

After watching the gryphon and it's passenger disappear into the distance, Calvin doubled over with a hearty laugh. "Oh man, that was priceless!" he sighed, wiping his eyes.

"You really shouldn't laugh at his expense, Calvin." Susie chastised him.

"Hey! After everything he's done to _me_, I'd say I've earned a good laugh at his expense!" he countered.

Hobbes nodded with a grunt of agreement. Susie blinked confusedly. She was still coming to grips with the idea that Hobbes was, in fact, a living being; that he displayed a human-like level of understanding and was able to communicate – at least, on a rudimentary level, was simply baffling to her.

The tiger looked over as the Flight Master was saddling the next gryphon. Curious, he trotted over to get a closer look. He watched as the Flight Master prepared the bird for carrying it's next passenger. Susie watched from a distance, looking at him curiously – Hobbes would occasionally growl or chuff at the gryphon who would squawk and chirp in return. If she didn't know better, Susie would think they were having a conversation.

After a few more minutes, Aligria came over to the two remaining children. "Alright, which of you would like to go next?" she asked.

Hobbes let out a loud chuff after hearing this. Calvin looked over at his friend. "Guess I'm going next." He shrugged and went over to the Flight Master, who helped him get situated in the saddle. Once Calvin was safely seated, Hobbes jumped onto the gryphon's back. Calvin felt his best friend situate himself directly behind him and clasp his arms around his shoulders. However, to everyone else present, it looked as though the tiger was haphazardly crouching on the gryphon's flank with his paws clamped on the boy's shoulders.

The Flight Master looked at the scene dubiously. "Uh, kid, I can't let ya go like that, t'ain't safe!"

In response, Hobbes growled something at Calvin's ear. Calvin then turned to the Flight Master. "S'alright, Hobbes asked him." he said, patting the gryphon's neck. "He said he could take us both!"

The Flight Master could only stare blankly at him, blinking once or twice. He turned to Aligria, who shrugged, just as confused as he was.

Susie was doubtful about the situation, but she finally told the Flight Master to just go with it.

"Alright." the goblin rolled his eyes. "But if anything happens, I accept no responsibility for it."

"Whatever. Let's just get a move on, huh?" Calvin moaned.

The Flight Master pulled out his whistle and piped the tune again.

After hearing the tune, the gryphon, like it's comrade, started off down the runway and took off to the sky. Much like Moe, Calvin screamed as the bird took off; but unlike Moe, Calvin's scream dissolved into a raucous cackle – _he_ was clearly enjoying the ride.

With everyone else gone, it was now Susie's turn. Aligria brought her over to where the Flight Master was harnessing the last gryphon. The draenei lifted Susie into the gryphon's saddle before situating herself directly behind her.

"You _have_ done this before, right?" Susie asked the shaman with a hint of nervousness.

"Many times." Aligria replied. "Well, mostly I've ridden hippogryphs; but how different could this be?"

And with that reassurance, Susie tightened her grip on the bridle.

The Flight Master blew his pipe once more and the gryphon started down the runway.

"What's the deal with the whistle, anyway?!" Susie shouted as the gryphon's body rocked and bounded beneath them.

"Haven't any idea!" Aligria said in return. "If I were to guess, I would surmise that different tunes correspond to different destinations!"

"Oh." Susie gave that idea some thought. "I guess that makes sense. Sort of. _Whoa!_" she gave a startled yelp as the gryphon made a great leap and flapped it's mighty wings, carrying them through the air. Once it had reached a suitable altitude, the gryphon ceased flapping, opting to glide instead.

Susie, with no small amount of trepidation, tentatively took a look around. Far below them, a sea of gold swept by as they sailed over the vast savannah. "... Wow." she said in a breath of awe; it truly was a magnificent sight, which mere words cannot adequately describe. Feeling bolder, she loosened her hold on the reigns and looked down below to see the native inhabitants of the Barrens going about their day.

"Hey!" she cried, pointing in the distance. "It's one of those flying snakes!"

Aligria looked where she pointed to see the creature she had indicated. "That's a windserpent!" she said to the girl.

Susie was amazed. She gazed down the landscape and the abundance of wildlife this world housed. There were some animals she recognized from her world, such as lions, hyenas, vultures and giraffes; and some creatures that resembled zebras, only they had horns. Then there were others that were quite alien to her eyes – the windserpents, the thunder lizards and large, brown skinned animals with hunched shoulders, lizard-like tails and horns on their snouts, which Aligria identified as kodos.

Eventually, the open savannah gave way to a dense forest. And some time after that, the forest vanished, replaced by a vast body of water. And in the distance, the water surface was was broken by an island jutting out of the waves. As they approached the land mass, their altitude dropped until they came to land with a slight thump.

Susie climbed off the gryphon and stretched her legs and back. Looking around, she saw that they had landed on a small outcropping of land, bordered on one side by steep looking cliffs. Three piers stuck out from the shore – one of which had a ship docked to it.

As her gaze swept across the area, she found Calvin. The boy was leaning against a tree with a sly smirk on his face and Hobbes seated by his side.

"Hey, Calvin!" she cried, running up to him.

He cocked his head in her direction as she approached. "See you made it in one piece."

She nodded. "That was really something, wasn't it?" she said. Calvin gave a short nod. "We saw so many animals on the way over. It was incredible!"

"Did you see the dinosaurs?" Calvin asked.

Susie looked at him in surprise. "There are _dinosaurs_ here?"

"Oh yeah! Hobbes an' I saw a whole pack of raptors runnin' around!"

"Oh," Susie breathed. "...No wonder you look so happy."

"Huh? Oh. Yeah, seeing dinosaurs was exciting, but that's not why I'm smiling."

"Why are you, then?"

Calvin tilted his head forward. Susie looked where he had pointed and in spite of herself, gave a light chuckle. Moe was still seated on his gryphon, his face ashen with a white-knuckled grasp on the reigns while Aligria and a very tall man with pale blue-gray skin and long, pointed ears were coercing him to get off. Eventually, it was the gryphon that convinced him to dismount – with a quick shake of it's shoulders.

Calvin, Hobbes and Susie went to join the rest of their group as Moe shakily got to his feet, rubbing his side where he had hit the ground. "Nice dismount, Moe!" Calvin called to the burly boy.

"Shut up, twinky!" Moe growled in return.

Aligria gave Moe a once over. Satisfied he was no worse for wear, she marshaled everyone together. "Alright, for the next leg of our trip, we'll be traveling by ship." she turned to the pointed eared man. "Pardon me, but could you tell us when the next ship to Azuremyst Isle is leaving?"

The man looked up from attending to some creatures that were sort of like gryphons, but had an appearance more like ravens than eagles with blue-green feathers and antlers sprouting from their heads. (Probably the hippogryphs Aligria had mentioned.) He looked toward the docked ship and scratched his chin. "Possibly half an hour. Maybe less." he then took a good look at the group assembled before him. His expression became perplexed. "Are these... all yours?" he asked Aligria, gesturing to the children.

"I found them in the Barrens." Aligria calmly explained.

"The midst of Horde territory." the man hummed gravely. "Not a suitable place for human children."

"Indeed not." Aligria agreed. "I'm taking them to the Exodar to see about getting them home."

The man looked at her blankly. "Oughtn't you to take them to Stormwind, then?"

The draenei looked at the man, then at the equally confused expressions of the children and tiger. "It's... a bit complicated." she told the man before ushering her wards down toward the pier and the ship docked to it.

* * *

An hour or so later, they had boarded the ship and were on their way to Azuremyst. Aligria leaned her elbows over the railing, breathing in the salty air as the ship rocked beneath her. It felt odd in a way, coming back to Azurmist – to the place where her people had stumbled into this world. It was like visiting someone you accidentally shot lightning at while training – even after the pain subsided and a recovery was made, the incident would always be there, and no matter how much one apologized or how much restitution was made, it could never be forgotten – not entirely.

The shaman sighed. Perhaps that's why she so seldom returned – even after all this time the aftereffects of the crash were still so evident in the land and wildlife.

She was brought out of her pondering when she realized the otherworlders had all gathered around and were looking at her fixedly.

"Ah, children." she smiled, amiably. "Is there something you needed?"

"S'there something you're not telling us?" Calvin asked, getting right to business.

"... Whatever do you mean?" she asked, looking all of them over.

"Like, for instance, what's this _Horde_ we keep hearing about?"

"Yeah." Susie piped up "And this morning, that troll said Ratchet was 'neutral' territory. What'd she mean by _'neutral'_ territory?!"

"And what's Stormwind?" Moe asked.

"... Stormwind is the human capital city." Aligria replied.

"Oh."

"So, what about the rest?!" Calvin demanded, looking at the shaman with a raised eyebrow.

"Alright, alright." Aligria said, in a placating voice. Once the children had settled down,Aligria took a deep breath. "Look around you," she said. "what words would you use to describe this world?"

The children looked at her, taken aback. They blinked a few times, processing what she was asking of them.

Calvin was first to break the silence. "Um,... I guess it's awfully... natural."

"Living." Susie added

"Medieval." said Moe

Hobbes chuffed something.

"Hobbes says 'tranquil'." Calvin interpreted.

"Good, good." said Aligria. "Now, from what you have seen, would you say that this is a good place."

Uncertain of where she was going with this, the children shrugged their shoulders and mumbled what sounded like agreements.

The draenei looked out across the water, contemplatively. "From what you have seen, this world may seem like a peaceful place. However, it is far from it.

"No fewer than three great wars have afflicted this planet. And though there have been episodes of uneasy truce, old grudges are not easily forgotten.

"When we first came to this world my people heard tales of a stalwart Alliance comprised of humans, dwarves, gnomes and night elves. We heard of the way they fought in past wars; of their bravery, honor and faithfulness – attributes to which we ourselves aspire. It took a fair amount of time and much convincing, but eventually, they welcomed us into their Alliance."

"And the horde?" Calvin asked, impatiently.

"... No war is ever one sided." Aligria replied sadly. "In opposition to the Alliance, there is the Horde."

"... Trolls?" Susie asked in a nervous squeak.

"Yes, the Darkspear tribe is part of the Horde. Other members of the Horde include the orcs, tauren, forsaken and blood elves."

They all mulled this over for a moment. "That... man, he said you found us in the _midst_ of Horde territory?" Calvin broke the silence.

Aligria nodded. "Kalimdor _is_ predominantly controlled by the Horde."

"... _And you didn't think to tell us all this earlier?!_" Calvin practically screamed.

"Perhaps I should have." Aligria sighed. "However, there is no sense agonizing over events that have passed."

"I can't believe it..." Susie moaned in a worried voice. "landing in the middle of hostile territory."

"Do not fret, Susie." Aligria said, comfortingly as she placed a hand on her shoulder. "You are in safe hands."

"Yes, but... if it hadn't been you that found us... if, if we were found one of those trolls or, or orcs or _whatever ELSE_ the Horde has... "

the draenei shushed her gently. "Best not to concern yourself with what _might_ have happened. Better to dwell on what may _yet_ happen."

She looked over in the distance. "We shall be docking soon." she reported. "Better collect your things."

"What things?!" Moe scoffed. "We lost all our things when we ran from the thunder lizard yesterday!"

"... Oh. Well, just get ready to go, then."

In a few more minutes, they had docked and the small party disembarked.

Calvin could see why this island had been christened Azuremyst – everything from the plants to the atmosphere seemed to have a hint of blue to it.

Aligria led them down a narrow dirt path that would take them to the draenei's crashed vessel. The trek was mercifully brief with few hardships – save an encounter with a large black cat with white stripes which Aligria had taken care of fairly easily. (Amazing what a bolt of lightning or a flash of fire can do to deter predators.)

At length, they reached a structure of heavy metal spires jutting out of the landscape with a large, open portal leading down into the earth.

As the inter-dimensional castaways gaped at the sparking, crackling metal mountain, Aligria stood before them and gave a shrugging gesture toward the structure. "Well," she sighed. "welcome to the Exodar."


	3. The Best Laid Plans

**The Best Laid Plans**

"Mind your step." Aligria cautioned as the small party made their way down the winding tunnel. It seemed a superfluous warning to Calvin; the floor was cracked and broken up into a jagged, uneven walkway, sparks of electricity crackled all around and huge, pointed crystals stabbed their way through the walls.

When they finally got through the hazardous tunnel, they found themselves in vast, circular atrium with a domed ceiling high above their heads. All around there were draenei strolling along, going about their business – some on hoof, and others riding on the backs of very large creatures.

"Whoa, check out those funky elephants!" said Moe when he saw them.

"... Elephants?" Aligria said, confusedly.

"Yeah, those!" he gestured to the riding beasts. Everyone looked where he pointed. The creatures did have an elephantine appearance; big, robust bodies with sagging, wrinkly skin, round, flat feet and long trunks stretching off their faces. However, they had two sets of tusks on theirs heads; two long tusks where a normal elephant would have them and a smaller pair sticking out of their cheeks. They had no discernible ears, instead they sported a pair of strait, backward pointing horns.

"Oh." Aligria chuckled. "Those are _elekk!_"

"_Elekk?_" Susie questioned.

"Yes. We commonly use them as mounts and beasts of burden." the shaman turned and continued on, calling "Come along, then!"

she walked down an inclined path to the floor below. She didn't stop or speak to anyone, only briskly strode ever onward. The children, having much shorter legs than Aligria, had to scramble on more than one occasion to keep up with her.

Calvin was about to question where they were going when Aligria quickly turned and headed into an entryway off the side. They followed after and found themselves standing before a circular bar.

A single draenei stood behind the bar. Hearing the party approach, he turned to greet them; but when he saw Aligria, he took on a look of surprise. "By the Naaru," he breathed, leaning in closer. "that couldn't possibly be Aligria, could it?!"

"Hello Breel." Aligria replied with a soft smile.

Breel's mouth spread into a wide grin. Chuckling happily, he said "Hey, welcome back! What's it been, two years?!"

"Three and a half." Aligria answered. "But, who's counting?"

Breel chuckled again, looking at her fondly. "So. How is life in the Eastern Kingdoms, eh? Those humans treating you well?"

"Well enough."

"Really?! You must tell me all about it!"

"Some other time, perhaps." Aligria replied. "Right now I have some rather urgent errands I must run." she seemed to hesitate for a moment before proceeding. "I was wondering... if you might keep an eye on this lot while I'm out."

Breel blinked in confusion a bit before leaning over the counter to get a look at the group of children. His eyebrows raised as he looked from the children to Aligria and back again. "... Is it Orphan's Week already?" he asked, scratching his head.

"It's a bit more complicated than that." Aligria answered in an apologetic tone.

"Really?" he said, giving her a scrutinizing gaze. "I'd _really_ like to hear _that_ story."

"And you will!" she promised. "Just... take care of them for a little while and I'll regale you with all my myriad adventures!"

"... Very well." he sighed.

"Thank you, Breel." Aligria gave him a grateful smile. Turning to the children, she said "Now, all of you stay here and be on your best behavior. All right?" there were noises of compliance in response. "Good. I will be back as quickly as I can." With that, she bent down, setting her hands on the floor. Before anyone could ask what she was doing, her face elongated, her horns sunk into her scalp, her ears became bigger and moved to the top of her head, her hooves became paws and tawny hair sprouted all over her body.

Right before the astonished earthlings' eyes, Aligria had turned into a wolf! More astonishing, she had somewhere during the transformation become transparent – as though she were a ghost.

Quick as a flash, Aligria dashed out of the room and ran off through the atrium. The children and tiger watched in awe as she departed, practically flying as she went.

"Wow." Susie breathed.

"Can they _all_ do that?" Moe wondered aloud.

"Uh, no." Breel answered from behind them. "That is what you would call a shaman trick."

The displaced travelers turned to look at the innkeeper who put on a broad smile for them. "So,... where are you from?" he asked.

"Uhh... far away." Calvin replied.

"Indeed? How far?"

"... Pretty darn."

Breel looked at the boy for a moment. But it soon became clear that that was all the response he was going to get. "Ooookay, then... Are you hungry? Care for some food?"

They were not inclined to turn down a free meal – plus, it _had_ been awhile since they had eaten.

Breel led the children into the inn proper; a circular room with a few tables set about. He left them for a moment and returned with some freshly baked bread and an assortment of fruits which he set in front of the children. He then came out with a leg of meat which he offered to Hobbes.

The children happily ate the proffered meal; Moe snarfing down everything he could reach with gusto, Calvin grabbing what he could, occasionally doing tricks with his food and making offhanded anecdotes. Susie ate at a normal pace, savoring the flaky, buttery texture of the bread and the sweet tang of the fruit, and made polite conversation with their host.

Three hours later, Moe was flat on his back, snoring like a chainsaw with his mouth hanging open. Susie was quietly reading a book that Breel had offered her. Calvin, meanwhile, had taken to tossing the bone leftover from Hobbes' meal to himself.

After numbly catching the bone for what might have been the eightieth time, Calvin took a glance about the room; his companions were occupied, the innkeeper was out front dealing with other customers and there was still no sign of Aligria

"Well'p, not that this isn't fun, but I'm gonna go take a look around." he rose to his feet and deftly chucked the bone over his shoulder.

Susie looked up from her book. "What?! You can't leave!"

"Yeah? Just try and stop me! C'mon, Hobbes!"

"Aligria said to stay here!" Susie seethed, stepping in front of Calvin.

"Aligria's been gone for hours." Calvin countered. "I'm sure we won't be missed if we step out for a bit."

"Or she could come back right after you leave!" Susie reasoned.

"And so what if she does?"

"... What?!" Susie said with a truly flummoxed expression.

"Susie, did she get mad at _you_ when you wandered away from the inn this morning?"

"I,... well,... _no_."

"So, how much madder do you think she's gonna get if wander around her _own people?!_"

Susie couldn't come up with an immediate answer to that – which caused Calvin to don a smug grin.

"... But,... y'know, you really ought to think about this before you just go off like that." she finally managed to respond.

"Yeah? Well, while you think, Hobbes and I are gonna explore. C'mon, Hobbes!" he called to his best friend who followed wordlessly behind him.

The two of them sneaked through the front of the inn – Breel was preoccupied with another customer, so they got past him rather easily – and into the spacious atrium of the Exodar. As they pressed on, soaking in the grand view, Calvin felt a presence suddenly appear next to him. Turning his head, he saw Susie had arrived and was steadily walking along with them. "So, decided to come along after all, huh?" he snickered.

Susie gave him a fleeting glare. "Well, it occurred to me that if I _didn't_ come, you'd only end up getting yourself in trouble!"

Calvin turned so he was fully facing her now, walking backwards to do so. "Please, like I need _you_ to keep me out of trouble!" he said, dismissively. "I can do _just fine_ without – " at that moment, Calvin's head made contact with something tough, yet pliable. He turned around quickly to see that he had stumbled into the belly of an elekk. Surprised by this sudden touch, the elekk rose on it's back legs, trumpeting in panic. The elekk's rider – who seemed to have been riding along in a half-attending daze – was suddenly brought to full consciousness by his mount's sudden jolt. In a panic of his own, he seized the reins and yanked hard on them – causing the elekk to turn as it lowered itself; knocking over a table where a draenei woman was selling bags in the process.

The children, and all present bystanders, watched the spectacle in horror.

As the bag vendor attempted to salvage her wares and the rider tried to calm his mount, Hobbes turned to Calvin with a look of reproach. "Of course, it would help if you were paying attention." he said.

"That could've happened to anyone!" Calvin quickly replied. "C'mon, let's go!"

* * *

So they wandered around the vessel for a time, drinking in all the sights and sounds of the Exodar.

There were many people were bustling about – mostly draenei, but they did encounter a few members of the other alliance races. They passed a pair of men who were very short; only a hair taller than themselves, with broad, stocky shoulders and thick, scraggly beards; they were speaking in what sounded like Scottish accents. If Susie had to guess, she would say they must have been dwarves. Here and there she caught sight of what were unmistakably other humans and a few of the purple skinned people they had seen at Teldrassil – night elves, she surmised.

They meandering around the Exodar, when Calvin's attention was drawn to something. Without any sort of preamble, he made his way toward a huge passageway that led to a section of the ship that was illuminated by bright yellow lights. "Wow, check that out!" he called, running further into the area.

Susie, who had not seen Calvin turn toward the new area, found that she was quite a distance behind him. "Hey! Wait up!" she shouted as she ran as fast as she could to catch up to the boy and tiger. She then tripped, falling flat on her face.

"Oh dear," said a voice above her.

Turning over, she saw a draenei woman standing over her with long, wavy horns and brown hair tied in set of pigtails wearing a blue-green and purple robe. "Dreadfully sorry about that." the woman said, extending a hand. "Are you hurt?"

"N, no. I'm okay." Susie answered, taking hold of the proffered hand.

"Splendid." the woman replied, pulling Susie to her feet, then paused. She peered closer at Susie, squinting as she looked the bewildered girl over. Just as Susie was about to freak out, the draenei released her. "Have you come for mage training?" the woman asked with a smile.

Susie gaped up at the woman blankly. "I,... uh... _huh?_"

The woman sighed. "Do you wish to train to become a mage?" she asked, speaking slowly.

"I... wha, what is a mage?!"

"Why, masters of the arcane!" the woman trumpeted. A pulse of energy that pushed at Susie's clothes and hair radiated out from the woman as she said it. "We mages wield power over elements such as fire" she opened her right hand in front of Susie, revealing a large flame dancing across her palm. "and frost!" she showed Susie her left hand which had a swirling flurry of snow floating above it. "With training, you would learn to rain devastating bolts onto your opponents, transfigure eneimies, travel across the world in an instant, even alter the flow of time!"

Susie could only stare dumbstruck. "... Oh wow... that _does_ sound exciting... but there must be some mistake, I,... I'm _not_ a mage!"

"Not yet, perhaps." the woman responded. "But the potential is there. I sense the arcane within you."

Susie didn't know what to make of that – could she _really_ do all the things this woman said? "I,... I see... Well, I'll be sure to keep that in mind. But right now I really need to find my friends!" without waiting for a response, Susie turned and ran in the direction Calvin had gone off in.

"Do consider it!" she heard the woman call behind her. "It would be a shame to let such potential go to waste!"

* * *

Susie caught up with Calvin and Hobbes toward the back of the antechamber. They were in the midst of several round platforms, each of which was projecting a holographic image of various monstrous creatures. The two of them were observing the images with rapt attention.

"There you are!" Susie heaved when she caught up to them.

"Here we are." Calvin replied, still looking keenly at the holograms.

"I just had the weirdest conversation." Susie said as she trudged over to them.

"Do tell."

"Well, I ran into this draenei – a, a mage, I guess. She did all weird stuff with fire and ice and, and then she said _I_ had this potential arcane _stuff_ in me and then she asked if I wanted to _train_ with her!"

"... Interesting." Calvin hummed, not even looking up from his own musings.

Susie glared at the boy, a simmering anger starting to bubble over. "_Are you even listening to me?!_" she shouted.

"You met a magic draenei and she wants you to learn to cast spells!" Calvin answered, finally looking at her.

Susie was ready to yell at him some more, when she realized what he had said. "O – oooh." she let her argument and countenance fall.

"So. You gonna do it?" Calvin asked.

She gaped at him. "What, learn magic?"

Calvin facepalmed. "No, take up knitting! _Of course learn magic!_"

"Wha – of course not!"

"Why not?"

"Well,... because... 'cause the idea of me doing _magic_, it's just... it's absurd, that's what it is!"

"That draenei you met seems to think you could do it." Calvin countered.

"Yeah, well she's just..." Susie floundered for a moment thinking of a valid response. "... and anyway, were not going to be staying here, so there's really no point to it!"

"Oh c'mon, Susie! Think of the possibilities!" Calvin spread his arms wide. "Think of what you could do!"

That gave Susie reason to pause. What she had seen that woman do was pretty amazing – and to think that she could do those things herself did give her a sense of wonder. Plus she would be lying if she said the idea of turning Calvin into a jerkcicle didn't appeal to her. "We're not staying." she repeated. "I wouldn't even have the _chance_ to learn magic."

Hobbes made a low groaning sound.

"That's a valid point!" Calvin chirped.

Susie looked at him shrewdly. "Why? What did he... oh never mind!" she crossed her arms and turned around, hoping to find something to take her mind off the inane discussion. And she found it, all right. "Calvin," she squeaked. "_isn't that Aligria?!_"

Calvin and Hobbes both looked up in surprise where she had gestured. Sure enough, just a few meters across from them was their benefactor; her back was turned to them, but they could still easily recognize her. She was in an animated discussion with another draenei, and though they couldn't hear what was being said, it looked like it wasn't going well. She repeatedly made sharp pointing gestures at the man and waved her hands in a frustrated manner while her tail twitched like and agitated cat. The man, on the other hand, was vehemently shaking his head and raising his hand in a _stop_ motion.

"I think we should head back to the inn." Susie's voice creaked.

"I concur." Calvin nodded.

Hobbes chuffed in agreement.

The three of them cautiously slinked back the way they came, careful not to alert Aligria to their presence. Once they were out of the lighted area, they heartily dashed back to the inn. As they walked in, they were noticed by Breel, who gave them a curious look but thankfully didn't ask any questions. When they entered the back room of the inn, they found Moe seated at one of the tables, contently chewing on a piece of bread.

"Moe, we're back." Susie called upon entering.

Moe gave her a blank look. "... You were gone?" he asked, dully.

* * *

Not very long after they had returned, the children heard the heavy clopping of hooves coming in their direction. Aligria entered the inn, with a scowl on her face and her fists clenching repeatedly. As she passed by, they could hear her grumbling something unintelligible. She made her way to an unoccupied table and fell into her chair heavily. She called out "Breel, bring me a drink! Something _strong!_" before resting her face on her hand.

Seeing the shaman was clearly upset, Susie approached her slowly and carefully; the boys following close behind. "So,... h, how did your errands go?" she asked, meekly.

Aligria snarled. "Well, the gist of it is that I was bounced around from one person to another – each one progressively less helpful – only to finally be told that no one could be bothered with such a menial trifle as returning four displaced travelers to their proper home!"

Breel arrived and handed Aligria her drink, which she took a long pull from.

After hearing this news, the children's faces paled. "So,... that means." Calvin's voice shook as he spoke.

Aligria hiccuped as she set her cup down. The drink had taken the edge out of her face, leaving her with a more forlorn expression. "... I'm afraid you may be here for a while."

* * *

After finishing her drink, Aligria had suggested that the children head off to bed – though really more of an insistence than suggestion. Accordingly, Breel escorted them to a room in back where the beds were located. Once they were all situated in their own bed, he left them and went back to speak with Aligria.

Now Calvin wasn't content to just leave things like that, so he quietly crept out of his bed and tip-toed back to the main part of the inn.

"_What are you doing?!_" Susie whisper shouted when she saw him sneaking through the dark.

Calvin put a finger to his lips, shushing her, and continued on his way with Hobbes silently prowling behind him.

She turned her gaze to Moe who oafishly shrugged at her before ambling out of his own bed and lumbering after them.

Not wanting to be left alone, Susie had no recourse but to go along with the boys.

They all quietly crept to the doorway that separated them from the main inn. They leaned against the wall, listening carefully to discern the conversation between Aligria and Breel.

"What do you intend to do?" they heard Breel's deep voice ask.

"What else _can_ I do?" Aligria replied; she sounded weary – and perhaps a little tipsy.

"There is always room at the orphanage." Breel suggested. For a brief moment, there was a collective gasp from the eavesdroppers.

Aligria sighed. "... I can't do that, Breel." she said. "I promised that I would take care of them, and I intend to do so!" At this, the children sighed; their concerns allayed for the time being.

"Well, what are you going to do with them?!" Breel asked, flustered. "You can't very well go gallivanting around with a pack of children following you!"

"_I know that!_" Aligria barked. There was a moment of silence before she spoke up again – in a much calmer tone. "I suppose... I'll just have to find somewhere... some place to settle down."

There was a dismissive noise from the innkeeper.

"You doubt my intentions?!" she replied with a tone of aggression.

"I don't doubt your intentions," Breel countered. "only your capabilities."

"And what is _that_ supposed to mean?!" Aligria snarled.

There was a pregnant pause before Breel continued. "I've known you for a long time." he stated. "In fact, I might be so bold as to say I know you better than anyone. And one thing I know beyond a shadow of a doubt is you are incurably stricken with wanderlust!" Aligria made a noise of protestation, but Breel cut her off. "Don't even try to deny it! You start to get antsy when you have to stay in one place for extended periods of time – as I recall, the longest you've ever managed to stay was four months."

"Well, I've never really _had_ a reason to stay anywhere, _have I?!_" Aligria countered.

Breel made a grumbling sound in his throat – like he had something he wanted to say, but was holding his tongue as a courtesy. After a pause, he asked. "Why were you in the Barrens?"

"Pardon?"

"Why were you in a territory primarily controlled by the enemy?!"

There was another pause before Aligria replied. "I was gathering ores."

"There are plenty of places you could gather ores in alliance controlled areas." Breel Countered. "What drew you to the Barrens?!"

Another pause ensued before Aligria gave a heavy sigh. "I suppose I wanted to see the world, as it were."

"Mmmm _hmmmm_..." Breel hummed satisfactorily. "And that's exactly the sort of behavior that would raise problems when caring for young children."

"So why _was_ I drawn to the Barrens?"

"Eh?"

"There are any number of places I could have gone, so why was I drawn to the Barrens?" There was a pause in which the eavesdroppers could scarcely hear faint sounds from the shaman – as if she were talking to herself in undertones. At length, she finally spoke aloud. "Perhaps this was an act of providence."

"... What?" said Breel, echoing the human's unspoken sentiments.

"Think about it, Breel." Aligria continued. "of all the places I could have gone, I went to an area where there were three frightened children; children who would most certainly have been killed if I hadn't found them! So perhaps my going to the Barrens was all part of some cosmic design."

The children took a moment to chew on that idea – as did Breel, by the sound of things.

The innkeeper took a deep breath before responding. "Alright, supposing that _is_ what happened, that still leaves the question of where you're going to take them!"

"Finding a place to settle down shouldn't be difficult." Aligria replied, flatly.

Another pause followed before Breel tentatively said. "You know,... you could always stay... here."

"That is kind of you, Breel." Aligria replied. "... But no. I believe it would be best if were to live amongst other humans."

"Better for them, or for you?" Breel asked in a flat tone.

Aligria chose not to answer, instead she continued – seemingly talking to herself. "Now let's see, there is ample fish and game in Elwynn, and fruits and grain are not hard to come by – so food should not be an issue... Education, that will be trickier... if all else fails, I suppose I could teach them what I can. Of course the biggest obstacle will be finding a place in Stormwind."

Breel chose this moment to interrupt. "If you're really dead set on this, you might consider Goldshire – it's bound to be cheaper than the big city."

Aligria considered this for a moment. "Yes, perhaps so,..." she agreed.

The two draenei continued discussing the matter while the young humans – their curiosity satisfied – quietly crept back to bed. As they reentered the sleeping area, Calvin turned to Susie. "Well, looks like you don't have any excuse not to learn magic now." he told her.

Susie rolled her eyes and made a dismissive gesture before crawling into bed.

The four earthlings got into bed and slowly drifted off to sleep. Then Moe suddenly sat up, saying "What's this about magic?!"

* * *

The next morning at breakfast, Aligria proposed her idea to the children. They all pretended to take a moment to think it over – having already formed their own opinions on it the previous night. In the end, they all agreed with the shaman's plan.

Soon enough, they found themselves on a ship bound for the Eastern Kingdoms.

After they had been sailing most of the day, Susie made her way to the room they had been provided where she found Aligria sitting. "Aligria, can I talk to you?" she asked.

"Certainly." the shaman replied.

"Okay, so the other day in the Exodar, I... um, w-what are you doing?" she had just noticed the draenei had a small, yellowish something in her hand that she was scraping at with some kind of tool.

The shaman answered "I am making... I believe it will be a necklace."

"Necklace?" Susie looked at Aligria curiously. "... You make jewelry?"

"Yes, that is how I earn a living." was Aligria's response. "And with our current situation, it seems I may need to increase my output."

Susie was reminded of the previous night when Aligria had mentioned that she had been gathering ores. This must have been what she used them for. "Well anyway, I really need to talk to you right now."

Aligria continued her work, but still said "I am listening."

So Susie retold her encounter with the draenei mage and all that had come of it. After several minutes, Aligria set her work aside and looked at the girl properly. "That _is_ quite a tale." she hummed. "Now, are you telling me this because you are uncertain if you should pursue this course, or because you have already decided to pursue it and are simply looking for permission?"

"I don't know..." Susie sighed. "... Maybe... a little of both?"

The draenei gave her a long, solid look before saying "I can think of no compelling reason why you should not. In fact, since you may be in Azeroth for quite some time, it would probably be good for you to have something to occupy your time with."

"You really think so?" Susie asked.

Aligria nodded. "Ultimately, the decision must be yours. But, should you decide to do it, I could see to setting you up with a trainer."

Susie smiled meekly. "Thanks, Aligria. I really think – " she stopped abruptly when she felt something against the side of her face – like something large, but light had latched on to her. Turning to look at a small mirror hanging on the wall, she saw a white moth the size of a dinner plate hanging onto the side of her head. She responded to this the way any rational six year old girl would – by letting out an ear-splitting scream.

* * *

Calvin and Hobbes leaned over the railing of the ship, watching the waves lap up against the side of the vessel. When they had set out, Calvin had been excited to be on a ship – he and Hobbes had climbed all around the ship, pretending to be pirates scouring for a settlement to plunder. However, the novelty of the experience had worn off hours ago, leaving them to brood over their situation. Ultimately, they ended up looking out to sea, with the idea that they might catch a glimpse of some of Azeroth's sea life.

As they were watching, a sound caught their attention. It was a sound like rushing water – and not the usual sound of lapping waves against the ship, it was more akin to a rapid running river... or a waterfall. They looked up and saw, far off in the distance, a great, dark smear on the water, spanning across the entire horizon – a gigantic hole that the sea continually rushed into in a futile attempt to fill.

It was a spectacle they couldn't help but gawk at.

"The great maelstrom; an everlastin' testament to the travesties of war."

Calvin and Hobbes turned in surprise at the sudden voice. Behind them stood a dwarf with his arms crossed over his chest, gazing out at spiraling waves. He had weathered skin and a hardened gaze; he had a thick red beard and his hair tied back in a ponytail; he was clad entirely in leather that appeared to have scratch marks all over; he had a rifle strapped to his back and on his belt was a knife that looked as if it might have once been something's tooth.

Calvin looked at the man with keen scrutiny. "Wait, you say this,... _maelstrom_ is a product of war?"

"Oh aye." the man answered. "Many centuries ago, the Well of Eternity stood in what is now the eye of the storm. Durin' the war of the ancients, Queen Azshara and her Highborn used the well to open a portal that let the Burnin' Legion into the world.

"While they were attemptin' to widen the portal enough to let the legion's master through, a small force of night elves infiltrated Azshara's temple in an attempt to stop them!... They were successful,... to an extent. Sargeras didnae gain access to Azeroth... but the well imploded – blowin' the continent ta smithereens; And the sea rushed in ta fill the gapin' scar, but there's still fel magic in the works... and the waters have been churnin' ever since."

"Wow..." Calvin sighed, wondrously. He and Hobbes looked back at the swirling vortex with a look of amazement and dread.

Calvin turned back to look at the dwarf, who in turn seemed to have properly noticed him. "Ach, but where're me manners!" he said as he reached out and shook Calvin's hand. "Othgar Truesteel! And this is Natasha!" the dwarf stepped aside to reveal a supple tigress dutifully seated beside him.

Hobbes' eyes nearly popped out of his sockets when he saw her. "Whoa! Hel_lo gorgeous!_"

In response, she snarled at him.

Calvin gave his friend a reprimanding glare before turning back to Othgar. "I'm Calvin Mitchell; and that's Hobbes."

The dwarf turned his eye to Hobbes, getting a full look at him. "My, but he _is_ a handsome specimen!" he said in an appraising tone – causing Hobbes to smirk arrogantly. "But uh,... if yeh don't mind me askin', how did yeh come by 'im?"

Calvin thought back to that fateful summer day, so long ago, when he had set up a simple rope trap in the woods baited with a tuna sandwich. "It's kind of a long story." he replied.

"Ah." Othgar hummed, running his fingers across Natasha's head. "I only ask 'cause it seemed unlikely such a wee lad could tame a wild beast on his own."

"Oh trust me, Hobbes was _never_ that wild!" Calvin laughed. Othgar found his quip rather amusing – Hobbes did not. "What about her?" he asked, gesturing to the tigress.

"Ah, I only tamed her quite recently.." the hunter recounted, stroking his beard at the memory."Way down in Echo Isles – some confounded, foolhardy excursion I took as a token of bravery..."

Calvin looked at Othgar with an eager gleam in his eye. Noticing this, the hunter faltered a bit. "O' 'course, I wouldnae recommend it! Very dangerous – nearly lost me head more than once on that trip!"

"Still, that's incredible!" Calvin spoke with all the exuberance he could muster. "Wish _I_ could do that sort of stuff!"

"S'at so?..." Othgar mused. "Well yeh know, once we put inta port, I might be able ta show yeh a thing'er two."

"Oh could you?!" Calvin positively beamed. "That'd be – "

He was cut off by a shrill scream sounding from somewhere below deck.

* * *

Moe was bored. There just wasn't anything to _do_ on this lame boat! Usually when he had nothing to do, he'd rough up the twinkie for some laughs – unfortunately, now that the twerp's dopey teddy bear had turned into a for real tiger – with teeth and claws, that probably wasn't the best idea; plus, if he _did_ pound the pint-sized pipsqueak, he's almost certainly rat him out to Aligria! Then the draenei would teach him a lesson with some zaps of lightning. (Or worse, give him a lecture.)

So without his favorite chew toy, Moe was left to wander around the ship, looking for something – anything to occupy himself with; but he quickly found out that there just wasn't anything to do on a ship!

After a while, his stomach started rumbling. Seeing as he had nothing better to do, he went to search for wherever they kept the food. It must've took at least half an hour of looking, meandering and back tracking before he located the galley. (Turns out it had been right behind him when he set off looking for it.) He entered the room to find it stock piled with barrels, baskets and jars all filled to the brim with food – oranges, bananas, apples, limes, nuts, berries, pears...

"Jeez, what's with all the fruit?!" Moe wondered out loud.

The only other occupant of the room – presumably the ship's cook – gave him a steely glare. "Would ye rather have scurvy?!" he barked.

"Yeah, that sounds tasty. Ya got any?"answered Moe.

The weathered old sea dog raised an incredulous eyebrow at the boy. Deftly, he pulled an orange out from one of the containers and tossed it to him. "Ye can 'ave that if yer 'ungry. Now I'm busy, so sod off!"

Moe caught the flying fruit, and with a contemptuous leer at the grouchy old codger, turned and left.

He strode down the ship's hallway, peeling his orange and tossing the peels aside as he went. Just as he was about to take of bite out of it's plump, juicy segments, a voice behind him shouted "_HEY!_"

The shout gave Moe a moment of pause, but not enough to actually care what the voice had to say. He continued on, but stopped again when the voice shouted again – this time accompanied by a discarded orange peel hitting the back of his head. "_HEY! I'm talking to YOU, you stupid OAF!_"

Turning around, Moe saw a boy glaring at him angrily. "You just stepped on my toes, you jerk!"

Moe sized the angry kid up; he was about as tall as himself, but his figure was lean – closer to Calvin's build. He grunted apathetically, saying "Yeah, well next time you should watch where you step."before he turned and walked away.

"_Aren't you going to APOLOGIZE?!_" the boy yelled.

"Nope." Moe stated, preparing to take a bite from his fruit. Before he could, however, he felt a sharp pain strike him in the back of the head. Turning around, he found the other boy sneering at him furiously. "_Did you just –_ " before Moe could finish, the boy quickly punched him square in the nose.

"_Oh, that is IT!_" an incensed Moe drew his fist back and swung it at his opponent with all the force he could muster. The other boy easily deflected the blow and struck him in the side. Moe made a heavy gasp as the hit landed. He nearly toppled over, grasping the wall for support.

"_Is that the best you got?!_" the boy taunted.

Infuriated, Moe launched himself at the boy again, throwing punches in a mad frenzy. However, his opponent deftly dodged, parried and deflected every hit and struck back whenever an opportunity presented itself.

After several minutes, Moe was obliged to stop for a moment to catch his breath. As he panted heavily, the other boy laughed haughtily. "You can't win, you know." he talked down at him. "My father is a captain in the royal army; he taught me _everything_ I know!"

Moe was beyond angry now, now he wanted nothing more than to pound this skinny Cretan into an icky paste! Exerting all his effort, he charged at the smirking rat at full speed.

He couldn't say exactly _what_ happened next; one minute he was storming toward the jerk with every intention of beating him to a pulp, then he felt a brief sensation of falling before landing flat on his back with the wind rushing out of him.

He lay there, staring up at the ceiling in a stupefied daze. The other boy strode over to him, looking down on him with an expression of spite and arrogance. "Pitiful." he said. "Absolutely pathetic." he reached over and picked up the orange Moe had dropped sometime during their scuffle. Turning a meaningful look at Moe, he added. "I suggest that in the future, _you_ watch where you step." He then took a bite out of the orange, letting a great amount of juice fall onto Moe's face before taking his leave.

After a few minutes of recuperation, Moe slowly and gingerly pulled himself back to his feet, huffing and wincing in the process. Once standing again, he found himself left alone with the abject pain and soreness of his body to remind him of the ordeal he had just been through. "... _That punk faced little worm!_" he shouted, punching his fist into his open palm. "_Thinks he's so tough just 'cause he knows some fancy moves?! Well TWO can play at THAT game! I'll show him, I'LL learn to fight to! Then the next time we meet, I'll get him, but GOOD! I'll pulverize him! I'll kick his can so hard, his KIDS'll be sore! I'll make him rue the day he EVER crossed ME!_"

After seething in his rage for a moment, Moe came to a realization. "I'm still hungry... wonder if that cook's got any scurvy left."

Before he could find out, though, the sound of a scream caught his attention. "... That sounded like Derkins." he thought aloud. "... Guess I outta check it out."

* * *

The cabin door opened and Calvin and Hobbes poured into the room with Moe only a few paces behind. What they found was surprising; Susie was seated on a small wooden stool, her face pale and her eyes wide. Aligria stood behind her, rubbing her shoulders and speaking softly to her.

Perplexed, Calvin walked over to Susie, who made no change of expression as he approached, and he asked "What happened?"

For a moment, there was no change. Then a small, almost inaudible sound slipped from her lips.

"What was that?" he asked again.

She made the noise again, a little louder this time.

"... Diiiidn't quite catch that." Calvin replied.

"... _Buuuuuug_." Susie hissed.

"... _Huh?_"

"Buuug!" she repeated. "Bi – bi – bi – biiiiig BUG! Head! Bug, head! Big – head – bug – head BIG!"

Calvin's expression became obscure as he watched Susie floundering about, making erratic gestures and babbling incoherently. "... O_kaaaaay_... Translation?" he turned to Aligria.

"My pet, Zael, landed on Susie's head." the shaman pointed her face toward her shoulder where Calvin could make out that fuzzy, white head and the tip of a fluttering wing of some creature. "Apparently, it startled her."

Behind them, Moe let rip a loud guffaw of a laugh. "Aw, real cute, Derkins! Getting scared over a _butterfly?!_"

"Moth, actually." Aligria corrected.

"And, to be fair, it _is_ bigger than any moth back on earth." added Calvin.

"Aye, but not nearly as big as some o' the _other_ moths out in the wild!" Everyone turned to see Othgar standing in the doorway, with Natasha sniffing about the room.

Aligria raised a quizzical eyebrow at the dwarf. "I'm sorry,... you are?"

"Oh, uh, guys, this is Othgar!" Calvin sheepishly gestured to the hunter. "He and I were having a chat when we heard Susie's... uh, outburst."

"Good day t'ye all." Othgar waved politely.

"I see." Aligria's expression softened somewhat. Turning back to Susie, she noticed that the color had returned to her face and she wasn't as stiff as she was earlier. "Well, if Susie is feeling better, I believe we should see about dinner."

"AWRIGHT!" Moe crowed.

* * *

So after a few minutes, they set themselves down to a pleasant meal; inviting Othgar to join them.

Throughout the evening, they all conversed and chatted with each other. During this time, Othgar came to learn about the nature of their situation; after which, he offered to help in any way he could. Of course, Aligria protested, but the thing about dwarves is they are quite persistent.

Seeing this as an opportunity, Calvin mentioned his interest in learning to hunt. As he expected, Othgar offered to train him in the ways of the wild.

Aligria was hesitant at first, but after a great deal of deliberation and coercing, she finally relented.

And so they went on having discussions and making plans as the ship sailed on to Stormwind.


End file.
